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shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

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    shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

    Hello all.
    I've been using the ActiveX shell.explorer2 to open web sites and log and make data entry from our database into web sites. The general method was outlined in the "screen scraping" article on learn alpha.com.

    This works fine:
    function documentcomplete as v (pDisp as P,URL as A)
    doc=web.object.document
    select
    case action_btn_label="Logon"
    action_btn_label="Search for patient"
    doc.getElementById("USERNAME")="peter"
    doc.getElementById("PASSWORD")="shazaam"
    end select
    end function

    The above code enters the username and password into the controls identified.
    My problem is that I've encountered a web site that I need to use that has no id values for the input controls, only unique names. So I need something along the lines of

    doc.getElementsByName("USERNAME").(1)="peter"

    which doesn't do anything. I've also tried
    doc.getElementsByName("USERNAME").(0)="peter"

    and a bunch of other variations without success. Anyone come across this?
    Thanks.

    #2
    Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

    Peter:
    Instead of:
    doc.getElementsByName("USERNAME").(1)="peter"
    Try
    x=getElementsByName("USERNAME")
    put here the full qualifying name of x, for example:
    document.form1.x.value="peter"

    Comment


      #3
      Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

      Thanks for the suggestion, Gabe, but it doesn't work either.

      Comment


        #4
        Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

        I am going to refresh my memory on this but if all fails you could always try document.write assuming the document is not too big. Not a very elegant solution.
        If the object is a password, by that I mean written in the document as password not as a text object, the syntax would be somewhat different.
        While you are at it, try defaultvalue instead of value see if that works.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

          Peter:
          The above syntax works for me unless the script in the document is something other than JS.

          Comment


            #6
            Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

            The website is for Navinet, a medical site.

            Here's what I have that doesn't work:
            Code:
            DIM web as P
            dim web.object as p
            dim web.class as c
            web.class = "shell.explorer.2"
            
            dim web.events as c
            web.events = <<%code%
            
            function documentcomplete as v (pDisp as P,URL as A)
            doc=web.object.document
            select
            case action_btn_label="Logon"
               action_btn_label="Search for patient"
                doc.getElementsByName("USERNAME").(1)="peter"
            
                ' doc.getElementById("USERNAME")="peter" works when there's an id for the control
            case action_btn_label="Search for patient"
               
                 action_btn_label="Search in progress"   
            case action_btn_label="Search in progress"
                 action_btn_label=""
               
            end select
            end function
            %code%
            
            DIM web_url as c
            web_url =  "https://navinet.navimedix.com/Main.aspx"
            
            
            dlg_expanded=<<%dlg%
            {startup=init}
            {region}
            | {activex=140,35web?.t.};
            {endregion};
            {line=1,0};
            {region}
             <Close>;
            {endregion};
            %dlg%
            
            dlg_events=<<%code%
            if a_dlg_button = "init" then
                action_btn_label="Logon"
                hourglass_cursor(.t.)
                if web_url <> "" then
                    on error goto web_error
                    web.object.navigate(web_url)
                    on error goto 0
                end if
                hourglass_cursor(.f.)
            end if
            if a_dlg_button="Close" then
                ui_modeless_dlg_close("Navinet")
            end if
            end
            I tried your suggestion, Gabe, but I can't get it to put anything into the USERNAME or PASSWORD controls on the Navinet site. If you can get anything put into those fields I would be grateful for the instruction!

            Comment


              #7
              Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

              Peter:
              navinet doesn't work with Firefox only with IE >5.5. I need to download IE v8 first. Just had a major spyware from IE, the worst I've ever seen, managed to get rid of it and try as much as I can to stay away from IE.
              I will work on it and see what I come up with.

              Comment


                #8
                Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

                Peter:
                I opened the page source and from a quick look at it, it seems that it's one of those designed specifically to defeat screen scrapping since it deals with sensitive private patients' information. I don't know if you can use the same function here, not sure even what you can use other than the ugly send_keys perhaps.

                Have you tried using something like roboform?
                Wish I had more time to work on it. Best of luck.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

                  Gabe,
                  Thanks for looking. Interestingly, it seems that none of the DOM functions work with the page. It's not as I thought just a question of using the right syntax for getElementsByName(); I can't even access pointers to objects that have an Id. Not sure why.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

                    Originally posted by Peter.Wayne View Post
                    Gabe,
                    Thanks for looking. Interestingly, it seems that none of the DOM functions work with the page. It's not as I thought just a question of using the right syntax for getElementsByName(); I can't even access pointers to objects that have an Id. Not sure why.
                    Might a 'lower level scrape' work here?

                    Ie read the html into a string variable and then look for a pattern that precedes the data and then a terminating string and take the data in between - repeat as needed.
                    Al Buchholz
                    Bookwood Systems, LTD
                    Weekly QReportBuilder Webinars Thursday 1 pm CST

                    Occam's Razor - KISS
                    Normalize till it hurts - De-normalize till it works.
                    Advice offered and questions asked in the spirit of learning how to fish is better than someone giving you a fish.
                    When we triage a problem it is much easier to read sample systems than to read a mind.
                    "Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler."
                    Albert Einstein

                    http://www.iadn.com/images/media/iadn_member.png

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

                      Hi Al,
                      It's not reading the page that's important -- it's writing to the input controls. I need pointers to the control objects to write to them.
                      - Peter

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

                        Originally posted by Peter.Wayne View Post
                        Hi Al,
                        It's not reading the page that's important -- it's writing to the input controls. I need pointers to the control objects to write to them.
                        - Peter
                        Yes, but can you find the pointer/info by reading the html and then setting up pointers from that?

                        Sounds like something in the activex isn't playing well with that site.

                        You might be eliminating the need for the activex...
                        Al Buchholz
                        Bookwood Systems, LTD
                        Weekly QReportBuilder Webinars Thursday 1 pm CST

                        Occam's Razor - KISS
                        Normalize till it hurts - De-normalize till it works.
                        Advice offered and questions asked in the spirit of learning how to fish is better than someone giving you a fish.
                        When we triage a problem it is much easier to read sample systems than to read a mind.
                        "Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler."
                        Albert Einstein

                        http://www.iadn.com/images/media/iadn_member.png

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: shell.explorer ActiveX DOM syntax issue

                          I found the issue -- the page is opened in an iframe, and the object pointer has to go through the iframe. I'm still working on the right method but I'm making progress. Thanks to those who helped.

                          Comment

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